Abortion

 With the potential elevation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, there is again much discussion of abortion. In all of this discussion, there is almost no consideration of the male voice and the male role.

This is odd since the male is an equal partner in the start of any pregnancy. Males play the major role in the drafting of legislation related to abortion. Men are the fathers, lovers, abusers, rapists, the ones responsible for child support.

The woman is legally given the right to choose the future of the child independent of the father’s wish to be childless or not. But once the child is born, the father becomes responsible again. The result is a large number of single mothers raising children, children without fathers in their lives and adequate financial resources.

The law tries to sort out issues of responsibility and consideration for the well being of the child if it is born or of the mother if it is aborted. And this to me is where the law struggles to determine the moral dynamics of any situation where abortion is considered.

Of course, human life is sacred. But that is not only an issue of abortion, but of hunger, war, human trafficking, economic deprivation and lack of health care. The legal, moral and ethical considerations regarding abortion are not easy. But men have a clear responsibility to approach this issue with a broad, empathetic, educated and open minded view.